Hudman



May 1, 1956 w. HUDMAN 2,743,840

CAN OPENER Filed May 12, 1952 INV' EN T OR.

M/[JZFY HUD/MAN ATTORNEY United States Patent 2,743,840 CAN OPENERWesley Hudman, Los Angeles, Calif. Application May 12, 1952, Serial No.287,269 1 Claim. (Cl. 220-52) Generally speaking, the present inventionrelates to an improved can opener. More particularly, it relates to animproved can opener adapted for use in opening a can of the type whichis sealed by the junction of a can sealing strip with the wall of thecan in a manner whereby the application of force will tear the junction(or plurality of junctions) of the can sealing strip and the can wall toeffectively open the can. The present invention is adapted for use ingrasping the free engageable end of such a can sealing strip and windingit around a spindle in a virtually planar manner, and is provided withmeans for easily disengaging the wound fastening strip from the spindleafter the can opening operation is completed. I

At the present time, a great many cans of the sealed type adapted tocontain perishable food or other means therein, are sealed by means of anarrow circumferential (or peripheral) sealing strip lying in ahorizontal plane near either the top or the bottom edge of a can. Saidsealing strip is usually defined by weakened edge junctions with theadjacent portions of the can walls whereby the application of sufficientforce to the sealing strip will cause it to be forcibly torn out ofsealing relationship with respect to the can wall, to effectively openthe can.

The application of the necessary force to accomplish this operation isusually provided by engaging a slotted key with a free engageable end ofthe can sealing strip and rotating the key to wind the striptherearound, thus applying sufficient force to tear the weak tearablejunction (or junctions) of the can sealing strip and the can wall.

It will be understood, that at the conclusion can opening operation, thesealing strip is wound around the key and both the wound sealing stripand the key are usually thrown away. This is so for several reasons.First, it would be necessary to completely unwind the strip from the keyin order to disengage them. Second, the edges of the can sealing stripare usually very sharp and it is undesirable to bring the hands of auser of the device into contact with said sharp edges because of thelikelihood of injury. Therefore, as hereinbefore stated, each key isusually utilized for one can opening operation, only. This necessitatesa new key for each new can to be opened, and is usually provided for byplacing a key in removable association with each can, before placing thecans on sale to the ultimate consumer.

This is undesirable for several reasons. First, because the keysfrequently become dis-associated from the cans and lost, and alsobecause of the additional expense involved.

Another disadvantage of such prior art arrangements is the fact that nomeans is provided for guiding the winding operation of the can scalingstrip around the key. Frequently this does not occur in a planarmannerin other words portions of the wound strip become displaced fromthe remainder thereof. This seriously interferes with the can openingoperation and, in some cases, may virtually entirely prevent it. Also,in an attempt to 2,743,840 Patented May 1, 1956 ice straighten-out thewound strip, the operator of the device may very easily cut his fingers.

Generally speaking, the improved can opener of the present inventionincludes spindle means (usually virtually vertically carried in verticalaperture means in base means) provided with actuating handle means(usually at the top thereof) for rotating said spindle means. Saidspindle means is provided with open-ended longitudinal slot meansadjacent the opposite end thereof (usually the bottom end thereof),which is adapted to removably engage a free engaging end of a cansealing strip (usually laterally arranged around at least a portion ofthe periphery of the can), whereby the handle means can be forciblyrotated to remove the sealing strip from the can sealed thereby, whilesimultaneously winding said sealing strip around said spindle in avirtually planar manner, and whereby said sealing strip can be removedfrom engagement with said spindle means and said openended slot meanstherein by relative longitudinal movement of the spindle means withrespect to the strip means and/ or with respect to the base means.

One preferred generic form of the present invention, may also includeengaging guide means elfectively carrying said spindle means (and/orsaid base means); said guide means being slidably cooperable withrespect to a projecting edge (usually the upper edge) of a can, wherebythe spindle means will be supported and carried in the proper canopening relationship with respect to a sealing strip and willeffectively wind said sealing strip on the spindle means, during the canopening operation, in a spiral, virtually planar manner.

From the above general description of the basic and one preferredgeneric forms of the present invention, it will be apparent to thoseskilled in the art, that virtually all of the hereinabove mentionedprior art disadvantages are virtually entirely eliminated and overcomein and through the use of the present invention.

For example, the present invention can be used repeatedly to open anydesired number of cans of the stripsealing-type. Therefore, the priorart requirement of one can opening key in association with each can, iscompletely eliminated.

After the completion of a can opening operation, the can sealing stripwound around the spindle means can be eliectively removed from thespindle means without any unwinding of the strip and by a simplelongitudinal movement of the spindle means through the medium of thehandle means. Thus, the strip need never be handled, and all likelihoodof cutting the fingers is eliminated.

Furthermore, the base means and the engaging guide means effectivelycause the sealing strip to be wound on the spindle, during the canopening operation, in a spiral virtually planar manner thus eliminatingall prior art disadvantages comprising loss of can-opening force and thelikelihood of cutting the fingers in an attempt to straighten the woundstrip.

Furthermore, the device of the present invention supplies substantiallygreater can-opening torque, thus mak-. ing it possible for a small womanor a child to easily and rapidly open such a can. a

With the above points in mind, it is an object of the present inventionto provide an improved can opener adapted for use in opening a can ofthe strip-sealed type, and to do so in a manner allowing the easydisengagement of the wound sealing strip from the can opening deviceafter the completion of the'can opening operation, whereby the devicewill be ready for subsequent can opening use.

It is a further object'of the present invention to provide an improvedcan opener of the type set forth in the preceding object, which isprovided with means adapted to cause the wound sealing stripproduced bythe can opening operation to be of a virtually planar type, whereby toovercome the disadvantages of prior art non-planar can opening, sealingstrip removing operations.

Other and allied objects will be apparent to those skilled in the artafter a careful perusal, examination and study of the accompanyingillustrations, the present specification and the appended claim.

To facilitate understanding, reference will be made to the hereinbelowdescribed drawings, in which:

Fig. l is a front elevational view of one illustrative embodiment of thepresent invention shown with the engaging guide means arranged inslidable cooperation with respect to the projecting upper edge of a can(shown broken away). This view also shows a can sealing strip inpartially removed relationship with respect to a can which had beensealed thereby, and shows the spindle means moved into upper disengagedposition with respect to the wound portion of the can sealing stripwhich has been removed from sealing relationship with respect to thecan. It should be understood, that, in reality, the spindle means wouldordinarily not be disengaged from the can sealing strip until after ithas been completely removed from the can. However, the spindle means isshown in disengaged relationship with respect to the can sealing stripbefore the can sealing strip has been completely removed from the can,for reasons of clarity.

Fig. 2 is a top plan view of the form of the invention shown in Fig. lwith the engaging guide means in slidable cooperation with theprojecting upper edge of a can and with the spindle means in downwardposition engaging the free end of a can sealing strip for the purpose ofbeginning of a can opening operation.

Fig. 3 is a fragmentary vertical sectional view taken in the directionof the arrows IIIIII in Fig. 2.

Fig. 4 is a view of the spindle means alone.

Generally speaking, the present invention includes spindle meansprovided with actuating handle means for rotating said spindle means.Said spindle means being also provided with open-ended slot meanslongitudinally carried thereby and adapted to removably engage a freeengaging end of a can sealing strip.

In the specific example illustrated, base means provided with virtuallyvertical aperture means is also included and is also adapted to mountthe spindle means for rotary movement and for limited vertical movement.

As illustrated, the base means is indicated generally at 1, andcomprises a longitudinal fiat member 2, curved slightly about animaginary vertical axis and centrally apertured at 3; a similar bottommember 4 which is not centrally apertured and which is spaced below theupper plate 2 by means of two laterally spaced posts 5 and 6, which maybe welded, soldered, or otherwise suitably fastened with respect to thespaced plates 2 and 4. The base member 1 also includes a similar centralplate 7, which is centrally apertured at 8 in alignment with theaperture 3 in the upper plate 2 and which is fastened at the endsthereof to the spacing posts 5 and 6. It should bev noted, that in thespecific example illustrated, the upper aperture 3 is somewhat smallerthan the lower aperture 8. The purpose of this will be explainedhereinafter.

In the specific example illustrated, the spindle means is indicatedgenerally at 9, and comprises an upper shaft portion 10 carrying amanual actuating handle 11 at the top thereof; and an enlarged lowershaft portion 12 longitudinally carrying an open-ended slot 13 in thebottom thereof.

It will be understood that the aperture 8 is of sufiicient size to allowthe enlarged spindle shaft portion 12 to move upwardly and downwardlytherethrough, and that the aperture 3 is of sutficient size to allow thereduced size spindle shaft portion 10 to slidably, vertically movetherethrough, but that the upper aperture 3 is too small to allow thelower, enlarged spindle shaft portion 12. to move upwardly therethrough.In other words, the upward limit of travel. of the handle 11 and thespindle means 9 is defined by contact of a shoulder 19, at the top ofthe enlarged spindle portion 12, with the underside of the top plate 2around the aperture 3, as is shown in Fig. 1. This arrangement is forthe purpose of facilitating the essay disengagement of a can openingstrip which has been wound around the enlarged spindle shaft portion 12during a can opening operation.

Also, generally speaking, engaging guide means may be effectivelyprovided for effectively carrying the spindle means (and/or the basemeans) for slidable cooperation with respect to a projecting edge of acan, whereby the spindle means will be supported and carried in theproper can opening relationship with respect to a sealing strip and willeffectively wind said sealing strip on the spindle means, during the canopening operation, in a spiral, virtually planar manner.

In the specific example illustrated, this comprises the base means 1 andthe outwardly and downwardly projecting car 14, which is adapted toengage an upwardly projecting edge 15 of a can. indicated generally at16, whereby engagcment of the slot 13 with the free end 17 of a canengaging strip 17A (as shown in Figs. 2 and 3), and subsequent rotationof the handle means 11 will cause the strip 17A to be wound around theenlarged portion 12 of the spindle 9 between the middle plate 7 and thelower plate 4 and will cause the entire device (through the medium ofthe engaging means 14) to ride around the upper periphery of the can 16until the entire strip 17A has been wound on the enlarged spindleportion 12 and has been completely severed from the can wall 18, bothabove and below the sealing strip 17A, at which time the handle 11 canbe moved upwardly with respect to the base 1 from the lower-mostposition illustrated in Figs. 2 and 3 into an upper-most position of thetype illustrated in Fig. l, which will effectively disengage the woundstrip 17A from the enlarged spindle portion 12 and the slot 13. In thisconnection, please note that, in reality, the spindle 9 would be woundfarther than shown in Fig. 1, before disengaging the siot 13 fro-m thewound strip 17A. For reasons of clarity only the spindle 9, in Fig. 1,is shown disengaged from the strip before completion of the can openingoperation.

It will be noted that the arrangement is such that the strip 17A isforced to assume a virtually planar position during the spiral windingthereof around the enlarged spindle portion 12, thus overcoming thehereinabove mentioned prior art disadvantages.

Numerous modifications, and variations of the present invention willoccur to those skilled in the art after a careful study hereof. All suchproperly within the spirit and scope of the present invention areintended to be included and comprehended herein as fully as ifspecifically described, illustrated and claimed herein.

The spindle means and the handle means can be substantially modified, ascan the means for limiting the longitudinal travel of the spindle means.

While I contemplate making the device of steel, with the enlargedportion of the spindle adjacent the slot hardened by suitable treatment,I do not limit the present invention to special material or treatment.

The exact compositions, configurations, constructions, relativepositionings, and cooperative relationships of the various componentparts of the present invention are not critical, and can be modifiedsubstantially within the spirit of the present invention.

The embodiments of the present invention specifically described andillustrated herein are exemplary only, and are not intended to limit thescope of the present invention, which is to be interpreted in the lightof the prior art and the appended claim only, with due consideration for'the doctrine of equivalents.

I claim:

An improved can opener for use in opening a can of the type which has aprojecting upper edge and which is sealed by a weak tearable junction,with a virtually vertical wall of the can, of a virtually lateralsealing strip having a free engageable end, comprising: base meansincluding an upper longitudinal fiat member having an inner concave edgecurved in a predetermined manner about an imaginary vertical axis andprovided with a vertical aperture adjacent the center thereof, andincluding an intermediate longitudinal fiat member also curved in saidpredetermined manner about said imaginary vertical axis and providedwith a vertical aperture adjacent the center thereof and larger than thevertical aperture in the upper flat member, and including a lower flatmember also curved in said predetermined manner about said imaginaryvertical axis; said upper flat member, said intermediate flat member andsaid lower flat member being vertically spacedly mounted with respect toeach other to comprise said base means and said vertical apertures insaid upper flat member and said intermediate flat member beingvertically aligned with respect to each other to comprise verticalaperture means within said base means; vertical spindle means carried inthe vertical aperture means for rotation and for limited verticalmovement with respect to the base means, said spindle means beingprovided with an upper shaft portion rotatably and vertically slidablypositioned in the vertical aperture in the upper fiat member of the basemeans and being provided with an enlarged lower shaft portion largerthan the aperture in the upper flat member and rotatably and verticallyslidably positioned in the vertical aperture in the intermediate flatmember and extending downwardly into the region between the intermediatefiat member and the lower flat member of the base means, said enlargedlower shaft portion being provided with longitudinal openended slotmeans at the bottom thereof cooperable to removably engage the freeengaging end of a virtually lateral can sealing strip, and the upper endof said upper shaft portion being provided with actuating handle means,whereby said handle means can be forcibly rotated to remove the sealingstrip from a can sealed thereby and to wind said sealing strip aroundsaid enlarged lower shaft portion, and whereby said sealing strip can beremoved from engagement with said enlarged lower shaft portion and saidopen-ended slot means therein by relative upward movement of saidspindle means with respect to the aperture means in the base means; andengaging guide means efiectively carried by the inner concave edge ofsaid upper fiat member of said base means and effectively slidablycooperable with respect to an upwardly projecting edge of a can, wherebythe base means and the vertical spindle means will be supported andcarried in the proper can opening relationship with respect to thelateral sealing strip and will eifectively cooperate to wind saidsealing strip on the spindle means during the can opening operation in aspiral lying in a virtually horizontal plane.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS1,646,719 Young Oct. 25, 1927 1,985,290 Hildebrandt Dec. 25, 19342,140,151 Dazey Dec. 13, 1938 2,286,039 Reynolds June 9, 1942 2,588,244Johanson Mar. 4, 1952 2,649,990 Lyle Aug. 25, 1953 FOREIGN PATENTS145,480 Austria. -1 Apr. 25, 1936

